Movie Review: ‘DYLAN DOG: DEAD OF NIGHT’

Missed opportunity. I don’t think a more fitting phrase could be used to sum up the film that is Dylan Dog: Dead of Night.  With the exception of reading a small synopsis, I tried to learn as little as possible about this cinematic release before watching it. From what I gathered the source material is an ultra popular comic franchise that deals with a quasi detective (think Kolchak, only more of a keeper of the peace between the undead) specializing in the supernatural, it features zombies, werewolves, vampires, and is set in the city of New Orleans. How could the film makers possibly screw this up? Well they sure found a way, read on to find out how. 

Dylan is a retired supernatural detective based out of the city of New Orleans, he retired after his fiancé was murdered by Vampires and is now reduced to snooping around cheap motel rooms and taking pictures for rich socialites wishing to expose their adulterous spouses. The film opens with a murder of a man at the hands of a werewolf. The daughter of the man murdered asks Dylan to take on the case and that sets the stage for him to return to his original trade. Followed by his recently undead partner, Marcus, Dylan soon realizes that this is no random murder and this leads him to an ancient werewolf secret that could destroy all of the undead(a term used constantly in the film to describe vampires, werewolves, etc….).

The plot alone sounds very promising and while this film had some good qualities, lets cover the bad first. For starters, I walked into the movie theater and the first thing I saw was the PG-13 rating for the film. With the exception of Insidious and Last Exorcism, I can’t think of many recent horror films that are worth their salt with that MPAA seal. Having this grade alone does not make the film bad, however, it’s obvious the filmmakers were trying for this rating and thus the violence in the film seem restrained.  In an age when The Walking Dead, a television show is able to get away with as much violence and language as it does, it is inexcusable that the filmmakers could make such a toned down product.

Another big problem I had with the film was the casting choices. While Brandon Routh was adequate in the roll, he just didn’t fit the part of a grizzled man, who has long since retired and is returning to his profession. I would expect a weathered actor in his forties or fifties, not a early thirty something, clean shaven, ex-Man of Steel. The vampires in the film looked like they came straight from a rave and looked way too clean cut. Dylan’s client, Elizabeth, as played by Anita Briem, is terrible and the forced sexual tension in the film was awkward at best. The one standout amongst this cast was Sam Huntington, who played the sidekick Marcus. I thought that he did a great job as the comedic relief and his undead hijinx were a much welcomed addition to the film, only producing a few groans.

All bad things aside, there were stylistic choices that I really liked about this film. For one, I really enjoyed the noir throwback narration that is used throughout the film. It is similar to the narration style that Darren McGavin did in Kolchak and Bogart did in a number of his films. It worked well for them and it worked well here. Also, I was rather fond of the Dylan Dog universe that was created. The idea that the undead walk amongst us, unbeknownst to humans, and operate as citizens is a very cool concept. The duo visits several places including a werewolf owned meat packing plant, a morgue run by zombies, and a sort of undead zombie chop shop. This fast paced detective work and use of multiple locations worked well for the pacing of the film.

While great in concept, director Kevin Munroe and writers Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer miss the mark on Dylan Dog. Ultimately, this film is being marketed to an age demographic that will not flock to theaters to see the product. Judging by the casting choices, the toned down violence, and the lame poster, the filmmakers were trying to get the Twilight mid teen audience. The monster detective subgenre won’t attract the desired age group and the audience that would love and appreciate this film will be ultimately turned off by the rating. This film felt more like a long WB pilot than a theatrical film and will most likely fail at jumpstarting a continuing franchise. Unless this franchise can be reborn in a different format (i.e. television series or more adult oriented film), this reviewer thinks this Dog should just be laid to rest.

For those of you unfamiliar with Dylan Dog, do yourself a favor and check out the books.  Dark Horse translated them in 1999 and they are a great read.